


Plague

by brokencasbutt67



Category: Murdoch Mysteries
Genre: Angst, Cuddling & Snuggling, F/M, Fluff, Light Angst, Nightmares, Plague, Sleep
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-04
Updated: 2020-06-04
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:08:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24543619
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brokencasbutt67/pseuds/brokencasbutt67
Summary: kinda based on the shitshow of the world rn? kinda just some fluffy angstfollow me on tumblr @brokencasbutt67-writer for more fics and updates
Relationships: William Murdoch/Julia Ogden
Kudos: 11





	Plague

This plague was unlike anything that had ever been seen in the known history of the modern world. People are dying left, right and center, and the mortuaries are overflowing with corpses.

Some killers have a specific audience for their victims - there was that one killer who would only choose child abusers for his victims. But this killer, this killer doesn't choose its victims. Everyone who has contact with it is a victim, and that's what makes it harder. There's no consistency in the victims to find a possible source, though that's not what's important at the minute, the most important thing in the current time is finding a cure.

William knows that Julia is struggling to cope with the sheer amount of bodies that fill the city's morgues as doctors and scientists alike search for a cure.

William had seen the generic curve that crime rates were lower since the plague had come - most people were so fearful of getting the illness that they refused to go outside unless absolutely necessary.  _ It does make his job easier when there is less crime than ever seen before in history. _

But William was seeing a darker side to the plague too. He knows that religion is less common nowadays, but when he sees that bodies are being burned in pits on every other street corner in an effort to curb the spread of the illness. That's what hurt him more than anything.

Holding such strong religious beliefs, William knows that burning bodies makes it impossible for their souls to reach Heaven, that they’ll be cast down to Hell. He can only pray to God that he doesn't get the disease, otherwise he'll be burned just like every other victim.

William hasn't even seen Julia in a week, and he's not sure what's worse. Well, he does know, burning bodies is probably a lot worse than him having so many nights away from his wife. But it hurts him, a lot when he spends every single night alone in a cold bed.

He's even turned to cuddling around what would be her pillow in the hopes that it would fulfil his need to cuddle.  _ It doesn't help in the slightest bit, but he can hope. _

William's sleep is badly disturbed by the current events, so much so that he feels like he's fighting a losing battle. His sleeping hours are plagued by images of the pained faces and burnt bodies, the smell of burning skin is toxic and it follows him everywhere he goes. He can't escape.

He jolts awake every couple of hours of every night, with sweat pooling at his hairline and his sleep shirt sticking to him. These...  _ nightmares _ , if that's what they can be called, have ruined his sleep pattern completely. He gets very few hours of sleep anyway, his brain never stops running, but now he's getting even less.

The nightmares are usually the same things too - the burning bodies. He doesn't let himself fall too deeply into thoughts about the visions, he doesn't want to struggle with it while Julia isn't around to help him to talk about it. He's spent so long on his own that he doesn't want to feel so alone anymore.

So he doesn't, he sits up and decides to read a book.  _ Sleep isn't necessary when the crime rate is so low. _

Sometime around 3am, he thinks, Julia eventually walks into their home. She drops her bags to the floor, hangs her coat on the stand, and walks upstairs to find William. She's more than surprised when she finds him wide awake, reading a book at the late hour.

"Ah, Julia" The smile on his face is wide. She's rather taken aback at the sight, but it's not unwelcome. She shifts to kneel on the bed, kissing his cheek gently before she begins changing into her sleepwear.

Once she's changed, she climbs into bed. A moment later, William is laid beside her. It doesn't take long for the pair to be cuddling close, the book is tossed aside. They're more than happy spending the rest of the night sharing each other's embrace.

But cuddling isn't the only thing they do. They talk, for a long time about everything and anything. Julia talks about her days in the morgue; William talks about the lower crime rate and how easy his days have become; Julia talks about the future, both as a couple and the general future; William opens up about his fears and his nightmares.

The conversation flows until the sun is rising. There's cuddling, there's a few kisses thrown in, the room is filled with love and it overwhelms them both, and possibly the city too. That doesn't matter though.

They should move, Julia should be going back to the morgue to continue dealing with the hundreds of bodies that come through every day. But she doesn't. She hasn't spent time with William for too long. It may have only been a few days since they had spent time together, but they were long days. Long, tiring days with no let up. And they need a break.

Sleep does eventually find the pair. They shift impossibly close until a hair couldn't fit between their bodies. Sun is shining over their bodies, a sick irony for the current situation of the world. William wakes up, as per usual, from another bad dream. He wipes away the sweat from his forehead, his chest heaves for a few minutes. But before he can lose himself in his own head, Julia is there. She strokes her hand over his arm, over his chest and the small actions somehow calm his racing heart more than anything else could.

He lays back down after a few moments, and Julia curls up on his chest. A calm sleep won't find William for a long time after the plague leaves. But having Julia by his side, he knows that he'll eventually get to the place where he's okay again.


End file.
